Chapter 1 The Night

The night was hazy.

Li Cheng颐 didn't choose to go home. Instead, he found a cheap hotel near the company to stay in.

Right now, organizing his thoughts at the company or outside would be much easier than at home.

Sitting in the hotel room, the walls were covered in light yellow fabric, there was a white single bed, simple tea-colored wooden tables and chairs, and a small window with gray automatic curtains.

That was all there was to the room.

The price was only one hundred and fifty yuan a night.

Li Cheng颐 took off his suit jacket. He had borrowed it from Song Ran. It was a little big, but it was fine for appearances.

He took a can of soda from the small refrigerator and was about to open it, but he saw a label on the side of the can.

'This item: Ten Yuan'

Li Cheng颐 silently put the drink back.

He definitely wasn't unable to afford a ten-yuan drink when it only cost three yuan, but he had originally wanted to drink it, and seeing the price instantly made him not want to.

He plopped down on the edge of the bed and re-organized the clues he had gathered today.

'Jia Ji'er was finally rescued, hidden in a crack.'

'Before he was rescued, he hummed a song, and the song he hummed was precisely "Kind Boolu," which is also the "Kind Big-Face Monster."'

'Coincidentally, the one wandering around in the blind spot, killing people, is the Big-Face Monster. If the Big-Face Monster is kind, does that mean the people it kills are unkind?'

'To Jia Ji'er, the Big-Face Monster is kind. I also saw him as a teenager in the blind spot, and he lived peacefully with the Big-Face Monster. This might mean that the Big-Face Monster, for him, might represent goodness.'

Li Cheng颐 took out his phone, playing with it unconsciously.

'Never mind all that. I just need to analyze what he did before he was rescued. Good and evil have nothing to do with me.'

He refocused his thoughts.

'Next time, after I enter the blind spot, the methods I can try are: 1. Close my eyes in a crack and hum a song, 2. Carve words on the wall of a crack, 3. Fall asleep or become unconscious in a crack.'

'Of course, it's best to do all of them once.'

For other people, this would be very, very difficult. Under the pursuit of the Face Monster, others probably wouldn't be able to resist for even a few minutes before being eaten.

But he was different. Using his Floral Whisper ability, perhaps he could really do it easily.

Thinking of this, the pressure in Li Cheng颐's heart eased slightly.

'Next, what I need to do is work hard to improve my physical fitness, strength, upgrade the Floral Scale Armor, absorb evil thoughts to speed up the process, and strive to develop the second Floral God Position.'

The power of the Floral Scale Armor was fully displayed during this business trip.

This also greatly alleviated the sense of crisis in Li Cheng颐's heart.

But the White Veil Man's counterattack and fighting skills also made him feel a strong desire for fighting skills.

'If the gun in that person's hand had been a little more powerful... I'm afraid I would have died on the spot.'

It was precisely because he was worried about this that he chose a blitzkrieg when he rushed into the opponent's lair later.

He wanted to fully utilize his own advantages, regardless of the consequences, surprise attack to kill them all, and then turn around and leave.

And reality proved that his approach was accurate.

Thinking of this, Li Cheng颐 felt much more comfortable.

He lay back on the bed, looking at the light yellow lotus-shaped main lamp above, and suddenly thought of the White Veil Man who had been tricked to death by him.

The Floral Whisper ability, Hand of Enchantment, was indeed extremely powerful. As long as it touched the opponent, it could quickly and forcibly control the other party for a period of time, making them uncontrollably infatuated with the people and things touched a second time.

'So, what is the specific control time of the Hand of Enchantment?'

Li Cheng颐 pondered, his gaze beginning to look around.

Soon, he found a target.

There was a black fly the size of a fingernail on the windowsill.

He slowly got up, tiptoed closer, and then suddenly reached out and covered it.

Poof.

The fly was caught off guard, gently covered by a large hand, and then pinched up.

It frantically flapped its wings, trying to escape the clutches, but to no avail.

Li Cheng颐 pinched it, thought for a while, touched it with his right hand, and activated the Floral Whisper.

Then, he let go, letting the fly quickly fly away, flying towards the night sky outside the window, and disappearing into the darkness in a blink of an eye.

'First test the range of effect.'

Li Cheng颐 waited silently, feeling the constant loss of physical and mental strength.

The Hand of Enchantment had two steps.

The first was to touch the target, and the second was to touch the thing you wanted the target to be infatuated with.

During the gap between the two steps, physical and mental strength would continue to be consumed.

Li Cheng颐 wanted to know what factors would affect this consumption.

'It feels like the rate of consumption is the same as before, there's no difference.'

After about five minutes, Li Cheng颐 gradually began to feel dizzy, short of breath, very tired, and very sleepy.

He knew he had reached his limit, and immediately pressed his right hand against the wall.

The second step of the Floral Whisper was activated.

The consumption stopped immediately, and he breathed a sigh of relief.

He sat down on the chair to rest for a while, and soon, a buzzing fly sound quickly approached.

Then, under Li Cheng颐's gaze, the fly that had successfully escaped earlier crashed fiercely into the wall with a straight, rocket-like, ruler-like, fierce posture, like a fighter jet.

Poof.

The fly stuck to the wall and didn't move.

Li Cheng颐 took out his phone and started timing.

He dragged the chair over and sat on the side, constantly recording the duration of the Floral Whisper ability while browsing his phone.

One minute.

Two minutes.

Five minutes.

Thirteen minutes.

Finally, the fly vibrated its wings and flew away from the window again.

Of course, before leaving, Li Cheng颐 touched it again.

After all, he had rested for a while, and his energy had recovered a bit.

'Thirteen minutes, it seems that this ability is also related to the strength of the creature itself. But specifically which aspect is affected, and what factors determine the duration, this still needs to be tested.'

After waiting for a while, after the fly had flown far away, Li Cheng颐 reached out and touched the wall again, activating the Floral Whisper.

Buzz...

Soon, a sound like an extremely weakened version of a fighter jet roar approached from outside the window and flew over.

The fly once again crashed headfirst into the wall with a determined and fearless spirit, leaving a little bloodstain.

Poof.

It stuck to the wall and didn't move, its body tightly pressed against the wall, like a painting.

Li Cheng颐 took out his phone and started timing again.

This time the duration was much shorter, lasting only five minutes.

'Is there a decline?' He frowned slightly, feeling that there should be no difference between the two Floral Whisper abilities...

'Wait!' Suddenly he thought of something, 'Could it be that the interval between my two steps determines the duration?'

Immediately, he reached out and touched the fly again while it was trying to fly away.

After the Floral Whisper lost its effect, the black fly flew out of the window in terror, heading towards the free night sky.

But soon, Li Cheng颐 touched the wall again... the fly shot back wildly, charging fearlessly towards the wall, leaving a trace of blood.

Time passed bit by bit.

As the tests continued, by the thirteenth time, Li Cheng颐 roughly understood the rules of the Floral Whisper ability, Hand of Enchantment.

'The ability strength is fixed, the time is determined by the strength of the one being controlled, and the rate of consumption during the gap is fixed.'

'Repeated use on the same target will result in resistance. The second duration will be halved, or even more. Afterward, it will continue to decrease gradually, until the ability completely fails by the thirteenth time.'

Li Cheng颐 didn't use a single test as the standard. Instead, in the following time, he repeatedly and continuously tested this Floral Whisper ability in all aspects.

Besides flies, he had also tried various other sizes of animals and insects, but the results were similar.

Besides testing the ability, the only thing he did was constantly strengthen his physical fitness and train in combat during breaks at the company.

The White Veil Man's fighting skills last time had given him a very deep impression, so, in order to prevent similar situations from happening again, he decided to increase the intensity in this area.

At the same time, he didn't forget to search everywhere for pitiful evil thoughts.

It was just a pity that going to lure hoodlums to take action, and then fishing and beating them, only absorbed one or two points of evil thought each time, and the accumulation speed was quite slow.

In order to concentrate his energy, Li Cheng颐 told his family that he was still on a business trip in another place and hadn't gone back, and then went all out to prepare for the next time he entered the blind spot.

Time passed bit by bit, day by day, and in the blink of an eye, more than a month had passed.

Li Cheng颐 often fished around, to the point that the nearby hoodlums didn't come close much anymore.

The progress of evil thoughts was also stuck at 89%, no longer moving.

"To improve practical combat ability, the fastest way is modification."

On the floor below Hongjin Company, in the training area.

Song Ran crossed her arms and said to Li Cheng颐 in front of her.

"Fighting styles and the like are not important. What's important is finding a modification that suits you, and then using your strengths and avoiding your weaknesses, and playing to your advantages."

"I understand, but I'm still a little resistant to modifying my body." Li Cheng颐 shook his head slightly, denying the other party's suggestion.

"Indeed, if you want to form strength, you must maintain it often. And the price is not cheap." Song Ran nodded in agreement.

"What about Feiyi?" Li Cheng颐 asked softly.

"Feiyi... relies heavily on talent, relies on brainpower, and belongs to the assassin category." Song Ran frowned, "Actually, I don't recommend you choose Feiyi. They are too extreme."

"I only know that Feiyi is a system that controls unmanned machines to fight and kill. Can you tell me more about the rest?" Li Cheng颐 was very interested in this aspect and asked.

Compared to cyborgs, although Feiyi has many shortcomings, it has one major advantage, which is that it doesn't modify the body.

"The most basic type of Feiyi also requires strong logistical maintenance. Although it's not as troublesome as cyborgs, it also requires high requirements for brainwave calculation. If you're interested, you can look for civilian Feiyi on the market and try it out first." Song Ran frowned and replied.

"Feiyi has a long control distance and strong lethality, but its protection of itself is extremely weak."

"Weakness is not a problem. As long as I solve the opponent first, weakness is absolutely safe for me." Li Cheng颐 replied.

"Okay, but whether it's Feiyi or modification modules, you have to earn money to buy them yourself. The company can't invest in this kind of super-large-value purely personal item." Song Ran reminded, "My prosthetic limb was bought with my own money."

"Super-large-value... Where should I buy Feiyi?" Li Cheng颐 was a little apprehensive. He was worried about whether the little savings he had just received in his wallet were enough to buy the cheapest one.

"First go to the brainpower calculation center to calculate your brainpower. If there are no problems, you will get a certificate proving that your brainpower meets the standard, and also that your background is clean.

Choosing the brand of Feiyi is also a troublesome matter. You'd better start with amateur practice first," Song Ran continued.